Mercury drops in Taiwan, sinks to 14.4 degrees in Yilan

CNA file photo

Taipei, Oct. 29 (CNA) Temperatures in Taiwan dropped sharply Sunday night, falling to the lowest level in Yilan County, which recorded 14.4 degrees Celsius in the pre-dawn hours, according to the Central Weather Bureau (CWB).Under the influence of northeasterly winds and the effects of radiative cooling, the northern half of the country saw temperatures of 15-17 degrees, CWB forecaster Kuan Hsin-ping (å®æ¬£å¹³) said.In Yilan, however, the temperature was 14.4 degrees, slightly below the average in northern Taiwan and the lowest recorded in a low-lying area so far this autumn, Kuan said.He said daytime highs will shoot up Monday to 28-30 degrees across Taiwan but the mercury will drop sharp ly again at night, particularly in western areas.Meanwhile, the CWB said it was keeping a close eye on Typhoon Yutu, which was located 800 kilometers southeast of Taiwan's southernmost tip as of 8 a.m. Monday.The storm was moving at a speed of 17 km per hour in a westerly direction, carrying maximum sustained winds of 173 kph, with gusts of up to 209 kph, CWB data showed.Yutu is expected to continue on it current path over the next few days, moving toward Luzon Island in the Philippines, and by late Tuesday its outer bands are likely to start affecting Taiwan, according to Kuan.While the path of the storm for the rest of the week is still uncertain, its outer bands are expected to bring heavy rain to the island starting Wednesday, he said. (By Chen Wei-ting and Elizabeth Hsu)Enditem/pc